The Avalon Ladies Scrapbooking Society Part 43

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour and boiling water, stirring with a wooden spoon until a soft dough ball is formed.

2. Once the dough is cool enough to handle, continue to knead with your hands. Divide the dough into 8 portions. Leave in bowl and set aside.

3. In a small bowl, mix the sesame oil, salt, and pepper.

4. On a floured surface, roll one portion of the dough until thin.

5. Drizzle a layer of the sesame oil mixture over the dough, using your hand or pastry brush to coat the surface evenly.

6. Sprinkle scallions over the dough.

7. Starting from one edge, roll up the dough (scallions included) to form a log.

8. Coil the log into a circle.

9. Use the palm of your hand to press the circle flat. Use a rolling pin to roll into a pancake, about inch thick. Continue to make pancakes until all the dough has been used.

10. Heat the vegetable oil in a skillet over medium heat.

11. Place one pancake in the skillet pan, cooking until the edges and center are a crisp golden brown. Flip pancake and brown other side. Drain on paper towels.

Basic Sc.r.a.pbook Tips.

Sc.r.a.pbooking is a fun way to preserve memories from a particular event or moment in time. It can be as simple or elaborate as you want.

You can also sc.r.a.pbook as a gift-the material objects of our life come and go, but what's often the most precious in people's possessions are the pictures and memories of their life. Add some journaling and other ephemera (ticket stubs, programs, restaurant napkins) to give your pages personality and depth. And, most important, have fun with it!

How to start:.

Choose the photos you'd like to sc.r.a.p. Cl.u.s.ter them by theme, people, or place in chronological order. You can also choose an event or special occasion (holiday, birthday, trip or vacation, new baby, etc.). Place them in a Ziploc bag or paper envelope until ready to use, labeled with the theme of the alb.u.m.

Choose your alb.u.m size. You can buy pre-made alb.u.ms or create your own.

Choose your papers and embellishments. Craft stores carry a wide selection of materials, the only limitation being your creativity (and possibly your budget!).

Begin laying out your page, which means putting everything down on the page. Don't glue anything yet. Have fun, move things around, experiment with different looks. If you're not sure where to begin or what looks good, flip through some magazines to get layout ideas. Think about adding a t.i.tle to your page that captures the theme and photographs.

Journal each photo or page. Write down details, memories, key words. Think of it as a caption or diary entry. Don't forget to include dates. You can write directly on the page or use pre-made journal cards. You can also type it up on your computer and then trim to fit the page.

When you're ready and everything is positioned as you'd like, glue everything to the page.

Insert finished pages into page protector sleeves or into your alb.u.m directly. You can also scan the page and create a digital image so you can share your alb.u.m virtually with friends and family.

How to Host a Book Club.

Meeting and Crop.

Why host a book club meeting when you can host a book club meeting and crop, Bettie Sheltonstyle? Make the most of your book club discussion by stepping into an Avalon Ladies Sc.r.a.pbooking Society meeting. Here are some suggestions: Choose and agree upon a theme. Some ideas are family, friends.h.i.+p, holidays, birthdays, trips, school, sports, pets. Why not sc.r.a.pbook about your book club meetings and members?

Tell members to bring 46 photos that fit with the theme, sharp scissors, glue, and any other ephemera they'd like to include.

Provide 12 12 sc.r.a.pbooking paper (solids and patterns), fun embellishments (brads, eyelets, b.u.t.tons, ribbon, stickers, alpha letters, chipboard shapes, rub-on transfers), extra glue and scissors. A paper cutter, paper punches, rubber stamps (and ink pads) are also great to have on hand.

Provide and/or have people bring Amish Friends.h.i.+p Bread cakes, cookies, or m.u.f.fins. Over 250 Amish Friends.h.i.+p Bread recipes are available on the website. Or try any of the recipes in the book, such as Connie's Mountain Dew Apple Dumplings or Frances's Chinese scallion pancakes.

Download discussion guide questions from the website.

Share your layout or a photo of your book club with Darien by posting it on the book's page at Amazon.com or on the Friends.h.i.+p Bread Kitchen Facebook wall.

For More Information.

The Alzheimer's a.s.sociation focuses on dementia and Alzheimer care and support. To find a chapter near you or to learn more about dementia, visit www.alz.org.

There are so many wonderful organizations that support domestic and international adoption, as well as fostering adoptions of special needs children. There are also many parent-advocate groups on Yahoo that try to get the story out about children in need. Because they are too numerous to list here, I am sharing a resource for those of you who are interested in learning more about China adoption. Half the Sky is an organization dedicated to ensuring that Chinese orphans have nutrition, love, and support, regardless of whether or not they find their forever family. Learn more about what they do at www.halfthesky.org.

For more than 250 Amish Friends.h.i.+p Bread recipes or to join our online friends.h.i.+p bread community, visit us at the Friends.h.i.+p Bread Kitchen (www.friends.h.i.+pbreadkitchen.com), or find us on Facebook (www.facebook.com/fbkitchen) or Twitter (www.twitter.com/fbkitchen).

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